Start by talking to your professor, librarian, and other experts in the field (graduate students, faculty, geographers, and other professionals). Email to set up an interview and ask how they conduct research or where they go to find information on your topic. You can also browse the K-State Research Exchange (K-REx) to find K-State faculty and alumni who have done research in your area of interest.
The internet is a first stop for most topic exploration. Check out the following sections for tips on exploring your topic online.
Evaluating websites follows the same process as for other sources, but finding the information you need to make an assessment can be more challenging with websites. The following guidelines can help you decide if a website is a good choice for a source for your paper.
Source: GSU | Center for Excellence in Teaching & Learning (CETL)
Quick links to Google, Wikipedia, Google Scholar, K-State Libraries' databases.
Wikipedia is your research baseline, it's the most common knowledge on your topic. For this assignment you'll need to find sources more specific than Wikipedia but it is a great place to start.
YouTube is an excellent place to get to know a research topic (i.e., find background information). You might find interviews with scientists, researchers, and stakeholders or videos explaining processes and approaches to solutions related to your question.
Depending on the product and audience of your research, a YouTube video might be a legitimate resource. Don't forget to cite it! Open the APA or MLA citation styles link and search for YouTube using "ctrl + f" or "command f" (Mac).